Abstract
Parkinson’s disease has been found to significantly affect health-related quality of life. The gender differences of the health-related quality of life of subjects with Parkinson’s disease have been observed in a number of studies. These differences have been reported in terms of the age at onset, clinical manifestations, and response to therapy. In general, women with Parkinson’s disease showed more positive disease outcomes with regard to emotion processing, non-motor symptoms, and cognitive functions, although women report more Parkinson’s disease-related clinical manifestations. Female gender predicted poor physical functioning and socioemotional health-related quality of life, while male gender predicted the cognitive domain of health-related quality of life. Some studies reported gender differences in the association between health-related quality of life and non-motor symptoms. Depression and fatigue were the main causes of poorer health-related quality of life in women, even in the early stages of Parkinson’s disease. The aim of this review was to collect the best available evidence on gender differences in the development of Parkinson’s disease symptoms and health-related quality of life.
Highlights
Parkinson’s disease (PD) is a debilitating neurodegenerative disease that is responsible for cognitive impairment, non-motor, and motor symptoms, which has been found to significantly affect health-related quality of life (HRQoL)
These results suggested the existence of gender differences with regard to the modifying effect of the monoamine oxidase B (MAO-B) genotype on the association of smoking with PD [22]
Cognitive decline is more pronounced in patients with PD compared to the general population, and recent studies have reported that around 80% of patients with PD will suffer from dementia after twenty years of illness [57]
Summary
Parkinson’s disease (PD) is a debilitating neurodegenerative disease that is responsible for cognitive impairment, non-motor, and motor symptoms, which has been found to significantly affect health-related quality of life (HRQoL). The differences in the cognitive functions between men and women with PD have not been widely studied. Res. Public Health 2021, 18, 198 of the fluidity of verbal production and facial expressions in men, while visual–spatial function impairment has been observed more frequently in women [4]. Female gender is associated with poorer scores in physical functioning and socioemotional HRQoL, while male gender mostly showed a faster decline in cognitive performances [6]. Some studies reported the existence of gender differences in PD patients with regard to HRQoL and non-motor symptoms (NMS).
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Sign-in/Register to access full text options 
Free) 
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a call
